Scarlett BoBo is the stage name of Matthew Cameron (born December 1, 1989), a Canadian television personality and

drag queen A drag queen is a person, usually male, who uses Drag (entertainment), drag clothing and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate Femininity, female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes. Historically, drag queens have ...

most noted as a finalist in the first season of the reality competition series '' Canada's Drag Race'' in 2020.

Career

Originally from

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, Scarlett BoBo began performing as a drag queen in the spring of 2008. Her drag mother is Tenora BoBo, with their surname coming from house mother Ginette BoBo. She moved to

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

in 2009.Brooke Porter
"Absolut wants you to meet the Canadians changing our communities"
. ''

Now Now most commonly refers to the present time. Now, NOW, or The Now may also refer to: Organizations * Natal Organisation of Women, a South African women's organization * National Organization for Women, an American feminist organization * Na ...

'', December 23, 2019. She studied public relations at

Humber College The Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, rebranded as Humber Polytechnic since 2024, is a public Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, college in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1967, Humber has three mai ...

, and has also taken classes at

circus school Circus schools are institutions that offer professional and sometimes degree-level training in various circus skills such as acrobatics, aerial arts, object manipulation, and other specialized physical skills. The rise of the circus school as a ...

, incorporating skills like fire eating and aerial silks into her drag performances. Treating her drag as a form of activism, she has performed at a benefit for the

Orlando nightclub shooting On , 2016, 29-year-old Omar Mateen shot and killed 49 people and wounded 53 more in a mass shooting at Pulse, a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida, United States before Orlando Police officers fatally shot him after a three-hour standoff. I ...

, as a host of the city's annual AIDS Walk for

HIV/AIDS The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...

, and as the creator of the all-gender-inclusive Absolut Empire's Ball. She has also been an active supporter of

Rainbow Railroad Rainbow Railroad is a North American charitable organization that helps lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex ( LGBTQI) individuals escape violence and persecution in their home countries. The organization was formed in 2006, ...

, regularly directing a share of the proceeds from her endeavours to the organization. In May 2020, Scarlett Bobo was announced as a contestant in the first season of the reality competition series '' Canada's Drag Race''. She was consistently safe or high throughout the season, and won the key ball challenge, ultimately placing as a runner-up in the finale alongside Rita Baga and behind winner Priyanka. She was only the second queen in the entire history of the ''Drag Race'' franchise, following Bianca Del Rio, to make it to the finale without ever having placed low in any challenge during the season. Following the conclusion of the season, she headlined a cross-Canada tour with the other ''Canada's Drag Race'' contestants, which was performed at

drive-in A drive-in is a facility (such as a restaurant or Drive-in theater, movie theater) where one can driving, drive in with an automobile for service. At a drive-in restaurant, for example, customers park their vehicles and are usually served by ...

venues due to the ongoing

social distancing In public health, social distancing, also called physical distancing, (NB. Regula Venske is president of the PEN Centre Germany.) is a set of non-pharmaceutical interventions or measures intended to prevent the spread of a contagious dise ...

restrictions remaining in place during the

COVID-19 pandemic in Canada The COVID-19 pandemic in Canada is part of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (). It is caused by SARS-CoV-2, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Most cases over the course o ...

. In October, she participated alongside Priyanka, Rita Baga and Jimbo in an online panel discussion as part of the Just for Laughs festival. ''Underneath the Empire'', a documentary film about Scarlett BoBo and the Absolut Empire's Ball, was screened at the

TIFF Bell Lightbox TIFF Lightbox is a cultural centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the first five floors of the Lightbox and Festival Tower on the northwest corner of King Street and John Street. TIFF Lightbox features five cinemas, two restaurants, ma ...

in 2019 before having its television premiere on OutTV in April 2021.

Music

In 2014, she released the single "Still Fucking Going", a collaboration with her Toronto drag colleague Allysin Chaynes. She followed up with the album ''#BoBosexuality: The ReRelease'' in 2015 which included Werrrk.com's Drag Song of The Year for 2015, Break My Heart,Jonathan Currinn
"Canada’s Drag Race Runner-Up Scarlett BoBo Has Dropped Her First Single Since The Show Titled 'C.E.O.'"
. ''CelebMix'', October 28, 2020. and later with the singles "Drop the Money" and "Qu'est-ce Que Fuck". In October 2020, she released the new single "C.E.O." In 2022, she joined the music label So Fierce Music.

Personal life

Matthew Cameron became engaged to Pete Maragos, a former political assistant to Ontario MPP Han Dong, in 2018.Bobby Box
"Matty And Pete: A Drag Queen Meets His King"
''Lift & Co.'', February 13, 2019.

Filmography

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scarlett BoBo 1989 births Living people 21st-century Canadian LGBTQ people Canada's Drag Race contestants Canadian drag queens Canadian gay musicians Canadian LGBTQ singers Gay singers Humber College alumni Singers from Ottawa Singers from Toronto Drag performers from Toronto Drag performers from Ottawa